Mining car bumper coupling



Oct. 7, 1941. w. L. BRO/CK ET AL MINING CAR BUMPER CUPLINGl Filed Ag.29, 1940 2 sheetssheet 1 Willie L. 151ml;

OCt. 7, 1941. W, BROCK.. ErAL l 2,258,534

MINING CAR BUMPERCOUPLING Filed Aug. 29, 1940 l 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 VII/1Patented Oct. 7, 1941 UNITED STATES PATE-NT OFFICE` 2,258,534 I j MININGcan BUMPER coUrLINo Willie L. Brock and Walter F. Jones, Bandy, Va.Application August 29, 1940, serial No. 354,756

1 Claim.

This invention relates to an improved `coupling especially adapted foruse on mining cars `and aims particularly to provide a coupling by meansof which one car may be drawnv by another car 4or by means of which oneof the 'cars may beupushed by the other with the couplingelements'vforming abutments or bumpers.

Still another Vaim of the invention is to provide a coupling wherein thecoupling elements are yieldably connected to the cars to iormgeither ayieldable draft vconnectionor a yiel-dable abutment.v v i Moreparticularly, it is an aim of the invention to provide a couplinghavingonovel means for automatically coupling the cars to therebyeliminate the, need for manually completing the coupling and the dangerincidental to the worker in being disposed between the cars as they arebeing moved together. Y

`Other objects and advantages of the invention will hereinafterbecomemore fully apparent from the following description of thedrawings, which illustrate a preferred embodiment thereof, andwherein.:`

Figure 1 is .aside elevational view showing the coupling inV acoupledposition, Figure 2 is atop plan view of the same,

Figure 3 is an enlarged'longitudinal vertical sectional view takensubstantially along the plane of the line 3-3 ofFigure 2,

Figure 4 isa longitudinal horizontal ,sectional viewlof the coplingtakensubstantially along the plane indicated by the line 4-4 of Figure 3,

Figure 5 is a transverse verticalsectional View of the coupling takensubstantially along the plane indicated by the line 5`5 of Figure 3,

Figure 6 is a fragmentary side elevational View of a yportion of one ofthe coupling blocks,

Figure 7 isa sectional view taken Vsubstantially along the plane of theline ,1 -'I of Figure 6,

Figure 8 is a plan view showing a plate used for attaching one of thecoupling members to a car, and y Y Figure 9 is a sectional View takensubstantially along the plane of the line Ii-.9 of Figure 1.

Referring more particularly to thedrawings, wherein like referencecharacters designate like or corresponding parts throughout thedifferent views, I0 designates portions of adjacent ends of a pair ofmining cars provided with depending flanges or aprons I I havingopenings I2, and

the invention, and which is adapted to'connect the two cars I0.

:The coupling'i3 includes a pair or coupling blocks I4 and I5 each ofwhich is provided with a drawbar extending' from the rear end thereof.The drawbar I6 of the block I4'is slidably kmounted inlan `opening I1 ofa plate :I8 which is attached tothe outer side lof one of the flangesfII over its opening `I2 by means of a plurality of faste'nings I9."`The drawbar I6 therefore extends not only through the opening I'Ibutalso through the` opening I2 ofthe iiange II to which the plate I3 isattached. An expansion coil spring 20 is mounted on the drawbar I6 andhas one end abutting againstthe inner side yof the plate 'I8 and itsopposite end abutting against 'a washer 2I which is mounted on thedrawbar IB and retained in position thereon' by means of a pin 22.l Thepin `22, as best seen in Figure 3, is in the yforr'n o'r shape of aninverted L` withlthe longer end thereof extending through an opening`23Vin the drawbar 1.6. A `cotti-rr pin Z4 extends through the longer endof the pin 2-2 for retaining said end in engagement with `the opening23. As 'best seen in Figure 8, the plate 'I8 is provided with a pair ofindentations 25 to receive tits y26 which project from the back side 0fthe block I'II"'to Aretain said block in substantially a horizontalposition. The block I4 is provided with an arcuately shaped recess'1 2,1which' opens outwardly offits forward end and lin which is disposed oneend of a link 2B. pin 2'9 extends perpendicularly through the block` Illandthrough the recess "21 and link 28 toconnect saidY link 28 to theblock I4. A cotter pin 30, which extends through the lower end of the-pin 29y prevents accidental removal of said pin. p

Thedrawbar 3I of the block I5 is slidably mounted in an opening A32 of aplate 33 and is similarly connected by fastenings I9 to the flange I Iof the other car .III and over its opening I2. The drawbar V3l also.extends through an opening, not shown, in a hanger 34. A pin 35 Yex" vten-ds through andis nmounted in the drawbar 3| behind the` plate 33 to.limit the outward movement of the block I5 relatively to plate 33. Acoil spring 36, of the expansion type, is disposed With one end abuttingagainst the pin 35 and its opposite end abutting against the hanger 34for yleldably urging the drawbar 3| out-- wardly. A `second pin 31 maybe mounted in the drawbar 3l behind the hanger 314, yas illus- I3designates generally the coupling, comprising 55 trated in kFigures land 2. The drawbar 3l is preferably so mounted that it will not turnrelatively to the plate 33 and the hanger 34 in which it is slidablydisposed to retain the block I5 substantially in a horizontal position.

Blocks I4 and I5 diverge toward their outer, forward ends and the blockI5 is provided with a recess 38 which diverges toward and opensoutwardly of the forward end thereof for receiving the free end of thelink 28 and for guiding said end toward the restricted portion of therecess 38. Recess 38 is provided with an elongated restricted portion atits inner end, designated 39, for receiving a slide 4I) which isslidably mounted therein and which is provided with the enlarged head 4Iwhich projects-toward and extends into the enlarged portionof the recess38. The slide 40 is also Nprovided with a perpendicularly disposedelongated opening 42, for a purpose which will hereinafter become vapparent. The block`I5 is provided with alined openings 43 in its topand bottomportions which open into the recess 38 and in which is adaptedto be disposed'the ends of a pin 44 the intermediateportion of whichextends perpendicularly through'theV recess 38. Theblock I5 is alsoprovided with a perpendicular slot 45 which is disposed Ylongitudinallythereof and which intersects with the recess portion 39. A trigger 46,as best seen` in Figure 9, is mounted on and keyed to. the squareintermediate portion of a pin` 4'I which is'journaledin the block I5 andwhich'extends through the'slot 45 above the slide40. A crank 48 isformed integral Awith one end' of the` pin 41 and is disposed on oneside of the restricted rear Vend 49 of the block I5. 'The oppositeendof'the pin 4'I extends beyondtheopposit'e side of the restricted end49 and is squared to receive a portion of a spring latch member 50 whichVis keyed thereto and which is provided adjacent its free end with aninwardly extending rounded projection 5I which; as 4best seen in Figures6 and 7, is adapted to engageone or the other of two spaced indentations52 in the -last mentioned side of the portion'49, for a purpose becomeapparent. Y

'One end'of the"trigger 46 extends downwardly of? the slot 45 andthrough the opening 42 of slide 4U. The`opposite end of the` trigger 46extends outwardly of the slot 45 and forwardly of the block I5 and isconnected by means of a link53"to the upper end of the pin 44.

which will hereinafter a length that it will not quite contact the head4I when the slide 40 is in a retracted position and when the blocks I4and I5 are abutting. Obviously, when one of the cars is being drawn bythe other car the blocks I4 and I5 will move out of abutting engagementand the free end of the link 28 will engage against the pin 44. Touncouple the cars I0, the crank 48 is swung forwardly of the block I5 toswing the upper end of the trigger 46 upwardly and rearwardly to raisethe pin 44 above the link 28 to thereby release the link. At the sametime, the lower end of the trigger 46 will be swung forwardly to movethe slide 46 to a forward, projected position. This movement of thecrank 48 will cause the latch 56 to swing in a counterclockwisedirection, from its position, as seen in Figure 6, to cause itsprojection 5I to move into engagement with the forward, exposed recess52 to thereby latch the trigger 46 in a retracted position to hold thepin 44 in a retracted position andthe slide 40 in a projected position.To recouple the cars VI0 the blocks I4 and I5 areV moved toward oneanother causing the link 28 to enter the recess 38 and be guided by itsinwardly converging side walls into engagement with the head 4I 'Iheimpact of the free end ofthe link 28 withv the head 4I will drive theslide 40 to a retracted position to thereby swing the trigger 46 backtoits position, as seen in Figure 3, to move the pin 44 downwardly andinto aprojected position with its lower end in engagement with the loweropening 43. The pin 44 will pass through thelink 28 to therebyautomatically couple the blocks I4 and I5. This will likewise causethelatch member 50 to return to its position, asl seen in Figure 6, withthe projection 5I engaging the recess 52, as illustrated in Figure 7, toretainthe trigger 46 and thepin 44 in projected positions. i l Y Thetits 26 will normally engage the recesses 25 in the plate I8 to hold theblock I4 in substantiallyna horizontal position corresponding to theposition of the block I5. In order to enable either of the cars I Il tobe dumped by means of a conventional cradle dump, not shown, the drawbarI6 is mounted to swivel in Vthe opening II so that the block I4 may beturned relatively to the plate I8 to permitY either of the cars I 0 Fromtheforegoing it will-be obvious that y the two cars I 0-when coupled asillustrated in Figures 1 to Lthy-'means of the coupling I3, will beyieldably connected so that either of the cars may be drawn by the otherandwhen the coupling -is thus employed for draft means the spring 20willprovide yieldable means lto permit the blockl I4 to be resiliently drawnaway from the plate VI8 to take up sudden jerks v which would otherwisebeA imparted to the. cars Ill.` The blocks I4 and I5 are. also. adaptedto abut.

to form a bumperbetweenthe cars III so that either of the cars4 ,may bepushed by theother and when thecoupling |3.is,thus employed the springA36 'will provide resilient means to permit the b lock AI5` to yieldablymove toward the plate 33 to-similarly take up sudden shocks and jerks.It will be noted that the spring 36 normally holds the drawbar 3I andthe block I5 in an extended position relatively to the plate 33, asillustrated in Figures 1 to.4, to permit said parts to move toward theplate 33 which will thereby compress the spring 36. The link 28 is ofsuch to be rocked in either vdirection for dumping. The spring 20 willbe compressed slightly in this operation to p'ermit the tits 26 to rideout of the recesses 25 so that the block I4 may be rotated relatively tothe plate I8 to accommodate the rocking, dumping movement of one or theother of the cars I0. When the car I0 which is dumped is returned to itsnormal, upright position the block I4 will be swung back to its originalposition and the spring 20 will retract the block I4 to cause the tits26 to again engage the recesses 25 to hold the block I4 in substantiallya horizontal position. Y

Various modifications and changes are contemplated and .may obviously beresorted to as only a preferred embodiment of the invention has beendisclosed.

We claim as our invention:

A drawbar mounting comprising a block, a drawbar extending therefrom andadapted to be slidably and swivelly connected to an end of a mining car,spring means for yieldably urging the drawbar and block toward the car,a plate adapted to be attached to said end of the car and through whichthe drawbar extends and in which it is slidably and swivelly mounted,said plate being provided with horizontally spaced said spring meanspermitting the block to yield indentations in its outer side, said blockbeing away from the plate to allow the projections to yieldably held bythe spring means in engageride out of the indentations When the block isment with the plate, and said block having proturned relatively to theplate.

jeotions arranged to seat in the indentations, 5

when the block is in a horizontal position, to re- WILLIE L. BROCK.leasably retain the block thus positioned, and WALTER F. JONES.

